Ultra-rare Mercedes CLK DTM AMG Cabriolet for sale

Merc keeps us well-fed with big V8 track specials, but none have ever come close to the manic DTM...

By Cam Tait / Thursday, 9 October 2025 / Loading comments

Track-focused convertibles have never really done it for me. Obviously, I understand the appeal: all the benefits of a drop-top (wind in your hair, more exhaust noise in your ears, etc) in a sharper, more engaging package. But all the hard work that goes into making something feel honed and agile goes straight out the window once you lump in hefty chassis bracing required to make up for the lack of a roof. Don’t get me wrong, I love a convertible in the right conditions, but for those times when I’m going for a proper drive, I’d always go for a coupe.

There are some exceptions to my drop-top hangup, mind. The first is any of McLaren’s LT Spiders, because they’re utterly marvellous. Being built around a carbon tub means they’re just as stiff as the hard tops with any weight gain limited to the roof mechanism. Then there are the cars that were never designed with a roof in the first place, like an Ariel Atom or Caterham Seven, and so don’t flop about the moment you drive over anything that isn’t billiard table smooth. Finally, there are the cars that are just too damn cool to ignore. Think E30 BMW M3 Convertible, Boxster RS Spyder and this exceedingly rare Mercedes CLK DTM AMG Cabriolet.

Mercedes already had a big V8 CLK when the DTM arrived in 2004. The ‘regular’ 55 was a punchy thing with 367hp on tap that could whisk it from a standstill to 62mph in a little over five seconds. The DTM, however, would take the CLK platforms to heights never ventured before. The 5.5-litre M113 engine would be carried over, though now with a supercharger bolted to the top. Power and torque leapt up to 582hp and 590lb ft respectively, lowering the 0-62 time to just 3.9 seconds. Those are solid numbers today, let alone 21 years ago.

Just as attention-grabbing was the bodykit. While the CLK DTM shared little with the race car, given that the latter was a silhouette that loosely resembled the road car, Mercedes did its very best to make its track special at least look like the car that won the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (aka DTM, as you know) a year prior. Specifically with huge bolt-on arches made from carbon fibre, a carbon diffuser and boot spoiler that all looked very DTMish indeed. The coupe also did away with the rear seats and the 55’s cushy chairs up front for carbon-backed buckets.

The Cabriolet, meanwhile, arrived a couple of years after the tin top and featured a number of small changes (soft-top roof aside), mostly in the cabin. The bucket seats were redesigned with lower bolsters to make it easier to get in and out of, while the rear bench was reintroduced and specially made for the DTM. It doesn’t look especially comfortable, mind you, being just a few bits of padding glued to two carbon fibre buckets that loosely resemble seats. Still, having a slightly numb bum is a price worth paying to sit closer to that thunderous V8 exhaust note.

So it’s a bit more special than a dolled-up CLK 55, and even makes the run-out 63 Black Series look tame. It’s much rarer than the latter, too, with only 80 Cabriolets ever made, six of which were right-hand drive examples like the car we have here. Naturally, it looks to be in superb condition, though it’s nice to see that it’s actually been used over the last 20-odd years having covered 28,500 miles. No sign of an asking price on the listing, but these are widely regarded as Merc’s maddest moment of the 21st century, and one that a lot of people are dying to get their hands on. Proceed accordingly.

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